Activating Scorbit for Virtual Pinball (VPIN)
Greetings, Virtual Pinball friends. This document will help you get connected to Scorbit.
Here is a handy video recorded by @mpt3k on connecting a virtual pinball machine to Scorbit that reviews all of these documented steps:
Currently, Scorbit is automatically supported in VPIN connected tables. This does require that the maintainers of the Virtual Pinball tables have added the Scorbit functionality to the game script. This document will review the settings required, though your mileage may vary depending on the specific table.
Prior to beginning this process, be sure the computer driving your VPIN application is connected to the Internet, and has network time sync turned on. You will find this in the Data and Time settings of your operating system. Please verify that time is accurate, as Scorbit requires good network time for authentication and general use.
Enabling Scorbit in Your Virtual Pinball Script
Tables with Scorbit support will have the Scorbit flags at the header of the table's script file. Look for the ScorbitActive variable along with the ScorbitShowClaimQR and ScorbitShowClaimSmall settings:
To enable Scorbit, change the following:
ScorbitActive will enable the feature, and ScorbitShowClaimQR will put the QR code for claiming player slots on the screen when the ball is in the shooter lane. If you have the screen resolution to support it, you can make the QR code smaller by setting ScorbitClaimSmall = 1.
If you've come to this page prior to having the Scorbit app installed on your smart phone or tablet, please follow the instructions in Scorbit Application first.
Pairing Your Table with a Virtual Machine
There are two ways to start setting up your table on Scorbit! We recommend using the Scorbit Installation Wizard. Experienced users may be more comfortable using the normal Scorbit installation process.
The Easy Way: The Scorbit Installation Wizard
Scorbit will guide you through the process, all it takes is a smartphone to get started.
Start your VPIN. When it begins, you will see an obnoxious large QR code filling a portion of the screen. It will look like this:
If you already have been using the Scorbit app, you can press the QR code icon on the upper left corner of the app at any time and scan that QR code.
If you don't have the Scorbit app, you can scan that code from your phone's camera, and it will install the app for you.
You will be guided in the app through three steps:
Register and Log In
Create or Select a Venue
Connect ("Pair") Your Machine
That's it! Then you can press the big "S" on the tab bar at the bottom of the app and begin claiming slots, submitting scores, and challenging your friends. You can now skip the rest of the document.
The Harder Way: Manual Scorbit Installation Process
These next steps require that you download the Scorbit application to your iOS or Android smartphone. You can download them here:
Apple: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/scorbit/id1505831174
Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.scorbit
Register or log into your Scorbit account within the app.
The following steps will be described in this document:
Creating your machine on the Scorbit platform
Pairing the machine to the Scorbit game in the cloud
Activating the machine on Scorbit
Creating Your Machine on the Scorbit Platform
For a more detailed explanation on how to create a machine and a venue, visit the My Machines / My Venues guide. In brief, login to your Scorbit account using the Scorbit app, and either choose the "My Machines" or "My Venues" from the account menu in the upper right. We recommend getting use to the My Venues list for various reasons explained in the My Machines guide:
If this is your first time using the app, we recommend using the My Machines list and pressing the + button on the lower right of the screen.
Tap the Select Machine button and you will be given an option to choose your machine:
After you select the machine, tap the red Select Venue button. You must select a pre-existing venue or create a new one:
Now you must enter the details for your venue, and determine if you wish it to be public or private:
Press the Save button at the bottom of the screen to create the venue. If the machine already exists in the location, the app will prompt you to select an existing machine or create a new one! Please select the existing machine if it's already located there, and if it is unowned, you will adopt the machine as its new owner.
Public vs. Private Venues
As a general rule, if you don't want people coming to your venue, it should be private. That is the gating factor. We are committed to that functionality.
The reason to put your venue as Public is if you want to share the location and have fun with people knowing the name. The idea here is that you need to feel safe with someone opening up their app, seeing there is a machine .5 km away from where they are standing, and hopefully not be disappointed.
There are those who put the name, city, state and country as their address so they can call it public. While this may seem like a good idea, remember that every time someone pulls open a list of venues to play pinball, they see your venue pop up on the list and it's a path for disappointment that they can't come play!
Therefore, we strongly recommend you use Public for venues that you want people to discover, and Private for venues you want to stay hidden from lists and searches.
Regardless, Always Put Your Full Address In
It is highly recommended you put the actual address of your venue into the address fields in order for the app to have accuracy for the location. We never share address information for private venues, only general location such as City, State, or Country. However, even for private venues, many features of the app require accurate proximity to enable functions.
For example, when the app is configured to do so, it will automatically open to a list of machines for a player if the app knows it is within a venue. The more accurate the location settings, the better the app is at this convenient feature. Also, as we increase scale and security, players cannot claim scores for machines they are not standing next to, so it is critical that the app knows the location to prevent accidental score claiming.
When a venue is marked Private, any scores saved will still appear on the global leaderboard, but score cards in feeds will not reveal the specific location of the venue or score. Private venues do not appear on lists, and only appear to users who either created the venue or have been added to the access list.
Access Lists and Claiming
When a venue is private, the app can't find the venue, or the machines in it. Therefore, unless you're on the access list for the venue, you can't claim slots. It's best practice to add your friends, family, or anyone who might be playing on your machines to your access list. More on how to add someone to your access list is covered below and in more detail in the section Venue Dashboard.
Safety Tip: If the app detects that you are standing in front of a machine (or within a certain range), this permission is overridden and the user can claim slots using QR codes! This is another reason to add your specific address to your private venue.
Location Privacy and Philosophy
We understand that no one wants to publicly advertise the location of a private home without permission. We absolutely want to make sure that this privacy is respected and enforced. This data doesn't belong to us and doesn't serve us in any way financially or for marketing purposes. We do not make this data available to others.
As for general location and time stamps, the reason we put a minimum of a city, state, province or country on a score is because we believe it creates a confidence and legitimacy to scores and the timing (or time zone) it's coming from. It also makes it way more fun to see where scores happen.
When you select Private on your Venue Settings the actual specific address and name of your venue, no matter what, will not appear on scores. Your venue will not appear in searches except for people on your venue access list.
We cover how to manage your venue and all your machines within it in the section, Venue Dashboard.
Once saved, click on the name of the venue in the list and you will enter the venue page.
This is the dashboard to manage your machines and player access on the Scorbit platform. Your machine should be on the machine list, though you may need to pull down to refresh the list. If not, you can hit the + key to add your new machine, and select the venue you wish to place it in.
Tap on the Player Access list tab to open the list of names you wish to have access to this venue. You can find more information on adding people to your access list in the Venue Dashboard guide.
Safety Tip: You must add all your family members, friends and other users to the venue access list if you want them to use Scorbit with your machine! Only people on the access list can navigate and claim player slots on a game in a private venue. Scorbit has overrides for this security feature when it detects close proximity to the machine, however GPS and location is never perfect so we STRONGLY RECOMMEND adding people on Scorbit that you expect to be playing your machine to your access list!
Press the Edit pencil on the right side of your new machine. You will then see a new button at the bottom of the Edit Machine view, Activate Scorbit. Have this screen ready for the next step:
Pairing Your Machine with Scorbit
The next step is pairing the machine entry in Scorbit to the VPIN. Turn on your VPIN and let it start up. You will see a QR code on the screen like this:
Safety Tip: If the screen does not show a QR code, then Scorbit is not enabled.
Return to the Scorbit app and press the button ACTIVATE SCORBIT. You will be presented with your phone's camera to scan the QR code on the screen. Once scanned, the app will give you a pairing screen:
Congratulations! Your VPIN is now fully connected to the Scorbit platform. It will now be visible from all menus on the app, ScorbitVision, and other users depending on how you have configured the settings. If you re-enter the My Venues or My Machines list, you will now see that your game is connected.
Note: Machine health, metrics, and status information only available to machines upgraded to Pro licenses, otherwise the small indicator dot will appear white.
Should you need to pair or unpair the machine again, you can return to the Edit Machine screen and you can find the Install/Attach or Detach/Unpair button on the bottom of the screen:
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